A dystopian Russian novel that explores life after a mysterious "blast" has turned back history, leaving a barely-literate population toiling in mind-numbing jobs and trapping rodents for currency. We try to put the book into some context, talk about Tolstaya's other work, and Tom mulls a new segment that involves him watching terrible daytime television.

We recorded this episode pretty late at night. I am posting this episode recap pretty late at night. We talked about some things, like how much MFAs cost, whether grad student pay rates are fair, and why Tom is so anal retentive about organizing books on his super fancy bookshelves. We also talked about Baywatch. And now you can download our conversation and put it in your ears. Isn't modern life wonderful?

This book won the Man Booker prize, though at least one of us might have thrown it across his living room. We talk about funny novels versus "comic novels," middle-aged male novelists who can't stop writing about their penises, and when it's okay to quit on a book. Also, Mike's got another edition of Fan Fiction Corner, featuring some alternate-universe TV fan fic, and ... well, spanking.

You can buy Mike's recommended album here. You can find out more about the podcast here.

Finally, listeners, it's here. We're reading the best-selling novel by Tom's nemesis and America's sweetheart, Q. Will Mike be won over by Pat Peoples' struggle to overcome a traumatic brain injury? Will Tom punch Mike in the face?

We talk about the book's treatment of race and mental illness, whether its details about football fandom are accurate, and how it might serve as a "playbook," if you will, for how to write a commercially successful novel.

First up this week, Tom checks out several apps promising to provide writing prompts and creative inspiration. In our second segment we're joined by Lucas Mann, author of Class A: Baseball in the Middle of Everywhere, to discuss "unlikeable" narrators in nonfiction, and how to turn yourself into a character.